The Road to the Centennial Cup Ends as the Final Team Advances
Updated May 2 at 4:10 p.m. EDT
While the Tier 1 United States Hockey League (USHL) and Major Junior Canadian Hockey League (CHL) get most of the attention when it comes to North American junior hockey, some great U20 hockey is being played in all corners of the continent as the Tier 2 North American Hockey League (NAHL) Robertson Cup Playoffs ramp up in the U.S. and with the Junior A Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) Playoffs already in full swing as the Road to the Centennial Cup Canadian Jr. A national championship nears the finish line.
In the States, the USHL is the only Tier 1 junior league. It is tuition free for the players and features top NCAA Division I and NHL prospects. The USHL Clark Cup Playoffs began April 14.
The CHL consists of the Western Hockey League (WHL), the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). Each of those circuits crowns its own champion, with the league winners competing for the Memorial Cup May 22 through June 1 in Rimouski, Quebec.
Those two leagues already get the majority of the junior hockey coverage, so our focus at this time of year turns to the next tier of North American junior hockey. The NAHL and CJHL also produce many NCAA Division I hockey players and players who move on to have successful professional careers.
The NAHL is the only USA Hockey-sanctioned Tier 2 junior league in the U.S. Like the USHL, the league is tuition-free for players and is No. 2 in terms of producing NCAA D1 commitments. There are 35 teams in the NAHL, with teams from all over the country split into four divisions. The league includes teams as far north as Maine, as far west as Alaska and as far south as Texas and Louisiana. Last year, the NAHL sent 400 players on to play for NCAA Division I or III programs.
North of the border, the CJHL, which also sends players to the professional ranks as well as to the CHL, NCAA divisions I, II and III and Canadian college programs, is comprised of nine leagues covering the entire country.
The leagues included in the CJHL are:
- Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL)
- Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL)
- Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL)
- Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League (NOJHL)
- Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL)
- Superior International Junior Hockey League (SIJHL)
- Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL)
- Quebec Junior Hockey League (LHAAAQ)
- Maritime Hockey League (MHL)
The British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) parted ways with the CJHL several years ago.
Nine CJHL league champions, along with the host Calgary Canucks of the AJHL, will compete for the Centennial Cup May 8-18 at Max Bell Centre in Calgary, Alberta. The individual league playoffs have been going on for weeks now, champions having been crowned in all but one league. There are more than 118 teams competing across the nine leagues in the CJHL.
CLICK HERE for the Centennial Cup schedule
CLICK HERE for Centennial Cup updated bracket
All Centennial Cup games can be viewed via webstream by CLICKING HERE.
Here are the teams that have qualified for the Centennial Cup:
- Trenton Golden Hawks (OJHL)
- Northern Manitoba Blizzard (MJHL)
- Rockland Nationals (CCHL)
- Edmundston Blizzard (MHL)
- Melfort Mustangs (SJHL)
- Kam River Fighting Walleye (SIJHL)
- Valleyfield Braves (LHJAAAQ)
- Greater Sudbury Cubs (NOJHL)
- Grand Prairie Storm (AJHL)
- Calgary Canucks (Host/AJHL)\
Centennial Cup Format
The 10 teams competing for the Centennial Cup are divided into two pools for preliminary-round play. Each team plays every other team in its pool in the opening round, which begins May 8 at 2 p.m. EDT when the Trenton Golden Hawks of the OJHL take on the MJHL champions and concludes May 14 when the MJHL champs face the Grand Prairie Storm of the AJHL in a 9:30 p.m. EDT start.
The top three finishers in each pool move on to the quarterfinals, which are scheduled for 6 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. EDT May 16. First-place finishers in each pool receive a bye into the semifinals. Quarterfinal games feature the second-place team from one pool crossing over to face the third-place team from the opposite pool.
Once the quarterfinal winners are decided, the teams are re-seeded for the semifinals, which will be played May 17 at 6 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. EDT. The gold-medal game is scheduled for May 18 at 7 p.m. EDT and can be seen live on TSN+.
A three-point system is used to determine the standings during the preliminary round, with three points going to a regulation winner, two points going to an overtime or shootout winner and one point going to an overtime or shootout loser. Preliminary-round overtime will be five minutes of 3-on-3 play followed by a shootout. For the playoff rounds, there will be 20 minutes of 5-on-5 overtime play until a winner is decided.
Here is a look at each team's Road to the Centennial Cup:
Similar to last year, the Calgary Canucks rolled through the AJHL playoffs, compiling a 12-1 postseason record, outscoring their opponents by 37 goals and sweeping the Grand Prairie Storm in the best-of-seven AJHL Finals to win their 11th league championship and second in a row. Because the Canucks are hosting the Centennial cup, league runner-up Grand Prairie was awarded the AJHL automatic bid.
The Storm went 8-4 in postseason play, winning eight games in a row before getting swept by the Canucks. Calgary finished first in the AJHL South Division at 37-13-2-2, while Grand Prairie was second in the North at 30-17-12-6.
CLICK HERE for all the AJHL Playoff results
It was do-or-die May 1 in the MJHL Finals as the Dauphin Kings and Northern Manitoba Blizzard faced off in in the seventh deciding Game 7 in 50 years of Turnbull Cup play. And the game didn't dissapoint as the Blizzard won in triple overtime when Quincy Supprien scored at 14:03 to give Northern Manitoba their first MJHL Championship since 2003. The Blizzard became tjhe final team to qualify for the 2025 Centennial Cup.
Dauphin rallied from a three-games-to-one deficit to even the series thanks to a 42-save shutout performance by Cole Sheffield in Game 5 and a 2-1 road victory in Game 6. Rylan Gage and Naaman Hofer scored in the final 3:58 of Game 6 as Dauphin extended its season with a miraculous comeback.
Dauphin and Northern Manitoba finished in first and second place, respectively, in the MJHL West Division. The Kings had 37 wins and 77 standings points, while the Blizzard won 35 times and compiled 71 points. Northern Manitoba has gone 11-4 in postseason play, outscoring its opponents, 45-29, while Dauphin is 11-6 with a 43-40 scoring edge. The Blizzard won eight of their first nine playoff games to advance to the finals.
CLICK HERE for all of the MJHL Playoff results
The SJHL Canterra Seeds Cup Finals concluded April 27 as the Melfort Mustangs completed a four-games-to-one series victory over the Weyburn Red Wings to advance to the Centennial Cup in back-to-back seasons. Melfort won the matchup of the SJHL’s first- and third-place teams in capturing the title.
The Mustangs went 46-8-0-2 with 94 standings points during the regular season, outscoring their opponents, 221-123. They then proceeded to march to the championship by going 12-2 in the playoffs, suffering one regulation and one overtime loss and outscoring their playoff foes by 32 goals. Melfort dropped Game 1 of the championship series, 2-1, before winning four straight contests. The Mustangs allowed just two more goals and recorded a pair of shutouts in those four victories.
CLICK HERE for all of the SJHL Playoff results
The Greater Sudbury Cubs defeated the Hearst Lumberjacks, four games to three, to capture the Copeland Cup – McNamara Trophy. Nolan Newton dished out four assists as the Cubs won Game 7, 6-4, to ensure back-to-back trips to the Centennial Cup. Greater Sudbury’s Daks Klinkhammer recorded points in the team’s final eight playoff games to help the Cubs conclude their championship run with a 12-3 postseason record.
Greater Sudbury swept its first two playoff series after capturing the regular-season championship with a 44-6-1-1 mark, 10 standings points better than Hearst. The Cubs outscored their opponents, 252-114, during the regular season. Lucas Signoretti led all NOJHL players in playoff goals with 17 and points with 36 as the Cubs produced four of the top overall postseason scorers.
CLICK HERE for all of the NOJHL Playoff results
After falling to Collingwood in six games last year in the OJHL finals, the Trenton Golden Hawks completed their redemption mission April 30 with a 3-2 overtime Game 6 victory against the Milton Menace to capture the Buckland Trophy and punch their ticket to the Centennial Cup. Cooper Matthews scored with 1:03 left in regulation and then 11:59 into overtime as Trenton came back from a 2-0 deficit to win the decisive game.
The Golden Hawks dropped at least one game in each playoff series, posting a 16-4 overall record en route to the title. They outscored their playoff opponents, 71-47, in the process after capturing the East Conference regular-season crown with a 47-6-2-1 record and 97 standings points. Trenton finished 10 points in front of the Toronto Jr. Canadiens and outscored their opponents, 265-136.
CLICK HERE for all the OJHL Playoff results
Two different teams faced off in the SIJHL Finals this year with the Bill Salonen Cup and a trip to the national-championship tournament on the line. The Kam River Fighting Walleye prevailed thanks to a 5-4 Game 7 victory against the Thunder Bay North Stars May 3. The Walleye led Game 7, 5-3, after Ryan Doucette scored 12:09 into the final period and held on as the North Stars rallied for a pair of goals in the final four minutes. Five of the seven games in the championship series were decided by a single goal.
Kam River went 12-2 in postseason play and outscored its playoff opponents, 54-26, after finishing second in the regular season with a 36-13-1 record. The Walleye had 73 standings points to finish four points out of the top spot and outscored their opponents, 236-118, during the season.
CLICK HERE for all of the SIJHL Playoff results
After surviving a seven-game scare in the CCHL Bogart Cup Playoff semifinals, the Rockland Nationals swept the Carleton Place Canadians in four games, securing the championship with a 5-4 overtime Game 4 victory April 27. Anthony Hall potted the OT game-winning goal 2:57 into the extra frame after Carleton Place had rallied for three goals in the final 22:04 of regulation to force overtime.
Rockland concluded its postseason run with a 12-3 record, and all three losses came in the semifinals vs. the Wisconsin Lumberjacks. The Nationals outscored their postseason opponents by a 56-39 margin after finishing first in the CCHL Yzerman Division with a 45-8-1-1 regular-season record. Rockland outscored its opponents, 250-138, and finished 21 points in front of the second-place team.
CLICK HERE for all of the CCHL Playoff results
The Valleyfield Braves earned a trip to the Centennial Cup by knocking off the LHJAAAQ defending champions from College Francais de Longueuil in six games to capture the NAPA Cup. Valleyfield split the first four games of the championship series before scoring a combined 11 goals in Game 5 and Game 6 to advance to play for the national championship.
Vincent Gauthier and Nathan Levesque led the Braves in postseason scoring with 26 points apiece. Gauthier paced the team in goals with 15, while Levesque was tops with 18 assists. Valleyfield has posted a 49-16-0 record this season, outscoring its opponents, 373-249
The Maritime Hockey League is a 12-team Junior A hockey circuit based in Eastern Canada. The Edmundston Blizzard swept the Pictou County Weeks Crushers in four games, outscoring them, 23-9, in the process to earn a spot in the Centennial Cup and capture the MetalFab MHL Cup championship.
Edmundston blitzed through the postseason by going 12-1 and outscoring its opponents, 67-33. The Blizzard also won the regular-season title with a sparkling 44-6-1-1 record. They outscored their opponents, 238-126, for the year and finished 10 points in front of the second-place Summerside Western Capitals in the standings.
CLICK HERE for all of the MHL playoff results
